PancakeSwap cuts CAKE emissions by 44%, targets 20% supply drop

• Daily emissions reduced from 40,000 to 22,500 CAKE.
• veCAKE governance and staking systems to be removed.
• CAKE price rose 12% to $1.78 after proposal announcement.

PancakeSwap has introduced a sweeping overhaul of its CAKE tokenomics, aiming for a 20% reduction in total token supply by 2030.

The proposal, named CAKE Tokenomics 3.0, outlines a strategy focused on achieving a 4% annual deflation rate, cutting token emissions, and scrapping several existing mechanisms that previously governed staking, governance, and revenue distribution.

The platform’s announcement triggered a 12% surge in CAKE’s price, pushing it to $1.81.

The decentralised exchange’s latest move reflects a major pivot away from its previous emissions and incentive structure.

Rather than promoting liquidity through staking rewards and governance voting, PancakeSwap is now concentrating on making CAKE a deflationary asset.

Emissions slashed to 22,500 CAKE per day

Under the new proposal, PancakeSwap plans to reduce CAKE emissions from 40,000 tokens daily to 22,500.

This will be executed in three phases, with each step informed by market conditions.

PancakeSwap will actively manage emissions using real-time data, shifting away from the previous model where emissions were influenced by community votes and locked token governance.

The proposal eliminates the veCAKE system, which allowed users to lock up tokens for voting rights and receive bribes from protocols.

PancakeSwap determined that this model resulted in inefficient emissions distribution, often rewarding low-volume pools disproportionately.

The new system will direct emissions based on pool performance and trading activity, reducing inefficiencies in the reward structure.

Revenue sharing scrapped

To further support deflation, PancakeSwap will remove revenue sharing entirely. Instead of redistributing trading fees to users, the platform will allocate these funds toward burning CAKE tokens.

This aligns with PancakeSwap’s objective of turning CAKE into a deflationary token, building on its 2023 performance where it reduced the total supply by 2.7%.

With the change, PancakeSwap aims to prioritise long-term value over short-term incentives.

The protocol noted that revenue previously earmarked for redistribution will now be redirected to support continuous CAKE burns.

This is expected to accelerate the reduction of circulating supply, targeting the 4% annual deflation rate consistently until 2030.

Staking and votes removed

A key part of the CAKE Tokenomics 3.0 proposal is the complete removal of staking and governance mechanisms.

All locked CAKE will be unlocked immediately if the proposal passes, and users will have unrestricted access to their tokens.

The decision reflects a shift away from governance-led liquidity strategies, where users previously influenced reward distribution by voting for specific pools.

This structural shift means PancakeSwap will fully take over emission allocation, using internal data and analytics to identify where liquidity is most needed.

By ending bribes, voting, and long-term staking locks, the protocol intends to streamline user experience and ensure that CAKE distribution is based purely on market demand.

CAKE price up 12%

Following the announcement, CAKE rose by 12% within 24 hours, trading at $1.78.

The market’s reaction suggests growing investor confidence in the deflationary roadmap laid out by PancakeSwap.

Source: CoinMarketCap

While price increases in reaction to tokenomics changes are not uncommon in crypto, sustained value typically depends on follow-through execution and broader user adoption of the changes.

The proposal was published on March 29, 2025, with PancakeSwap encouraging community feedback.

The final implementation will depend on the approval process, but the immediate unlock of staked tokens and the halving of emissions could start rolling out soon after approval.

The proposal and live updates have been posted on PancakeSwap’s official X account @PancakeSwap .